Not a single ballot had been cast in Lyutovo by 4 p.m. on 25 October. The village in Belitsa municipality has 158 registered voters, but its polling station remained without a vote well into the afternoon of Bulgaria’s presidential election.
Polling-station chair Asya Ortseva described the situation as a boycott demanding the release of Belitsa mayor Radoslav Revanski. Residents also linked their decision to stay away from the polls to his arrest. They denied receiving instructions not to vote.
Low participation was reported in neighbouring villages too. In Babyak, a commission member described one vote from a resident outside the commission itself, despite a substantially longer electoral roll. In Kuzyovo, the reported count at 4 p.m. was one voter and three commission members.
The local accounts give one explanation for the low turnout: some residents are presenting their absence as a political statement. They remain accounts from particular polling stations at a particular time, rather than a final result for the municipality.
Casting a ballot remains an individual decision. Polling commissions continue working and accepting voters until the scheduled close. The empty box reported at 4 p.m. therefore records the afternoon situation in Lyutovo, rather than its completed election count.
